BRISBANE, Australia – Liam Paro has remained in the gym in preparation for the IBF welterweight title fight with Lewis Crocker that he hopes will take place no later than April.
The Australian endured the disappointment of Paddy Donovan withdrawing from the eliminator for Crocker’s title that had been scheduled for the undercard of Nikita Tszyu-Michael Zerafa on January 16, but he has since learned that as a consequence he has been installed as Crocker’s mandatory challenger.
Paro, 29, had been preparing for Donovan since November, and for all that training for six months with such intensity can be demanding on a fighter’s body, he could be seen in the days before Tszyu-Zerafa like he had developed a convincing physique for 147lbs.
The victory in September over David Papot had been his first at welterweight, but came at the cost of an eye injury. That eye has also since fully recovered, perhaps contributing to his promoters No Limit’s determination to bring Crocker to Brisbane – Paro’s hometown.
“They wanna bring it here,” Paro told BoxingScene. “That was a good thing. They’ve brang the big fights here.
“My homecoming – they had it up in north Queensland. It was a homecoming for me. They promised us all this stuff and look how fast it got back to a world title in a new weight division. It just shows the pulling power they have and, truly, yeah, it’s exciting. They’re gonna give it a fair shake to have it here in Australia.
“Obviously the champion takes a 65 per cent cut, but we are confident we can win that fight. I just wanna fight for my fans; I wanna win; I wanna be a household name in Australia. So, we’re on that journey and No Limit have the same vision as me.
“It was heartbreaking [when Donovan withdrew]. Going through a full camp… We had an unbelievable sparring partner over from Russia; 12-0 pro; 300 amateur fights. We spent the money, you know? ‘Cause we weren’t overlooking Donovan. He’s a hell of fighter, so we were ready to make a statement in that fight. Then two weeks out he pulled the pin. Unfortunately it was illness. I wish him well. It must’ve been pretty serious to give up an opportunity that big.
“We’re moving on. We’ve stayed in the gym, perfecting our craft, and we got the call that got pretty much the fight on.
“I don’t want to get too excited yet. You know the boxing game. Until there’s pen to paper it’s just all talk. But it’s exciting and definitely a lot more motivating now. Again, there’s something to aim for and I’m sure No Limit can get to a good deal in the coming days. It’s between Eddie [Hearn, of Matchroom, Crocker’s promoter] and No Limit. We’d love to get it here, but I’ll fly anywhere. I travel well. We’ve seen that when I defeated Subriel Matias [in Puerto Rico for the IBF junior-welterweight title in 2024].
“We want to get it as early as possible if we win [the right to stage the fight]. I think Crocker’s not ready. He wants to fight in late April, which shows me he’d had a big Christmas; he’s relaxed. We’ve trained right through Christmas so I wanna get in there as soon as possible. I love fighting. It keeps you on the straight and narrow; it keeps me happy, and at the end of the day it puts food on the table for my family.
“As soon as the news come, we knew stuff was on the horizon. If this didn’t happen No Limit were happy to put on a show for me up in my hometown in February. I can’t thank them enough for doing things like that – for looking after me. So I stayed in the gym. I just keep ticking over.”
Asked about the evolution of his physique, he then responded: “We decided to move up to welterweight five weeks out from my welterweight debut, so I had no time to fill into the weight. Papot come to fight – it was a good welcome to the welterweight division.
“I’ve filled out already now. By the time the fight comes around – God willing – I’m going to be six months preparing and building into welterweight. The longer the time, it’s gonna suit me more. We’re ready to go physically; mentally. We were meant to fight this week, so we’ll just keep ticking over. It’s a beautiful base to start camp.”
Crocker recently confirmed that he has separated from Billy Nelson, the trainer who guided him to victory over Donovan and therefore the IBF title, and replaced him with Huzaifah Iqbal. How driven his promoters Matchroom are to deliver to him home advantage against Paro – also once promoted by Matchroom – remains unclear, but Paro is regarded by No Limit as one of their most valuable assets, and to that end George Rose explained the priority that securing a favourable date and location for Crocker-Paro has become.
“We’ll look to try to negotiate something ASAP, and if it goes to purse bids we’ll push really hard for it,” Rose – who is also negotiating the WBO middleweight title eliminator between Denzel Bentley and Endry Saavedra with Bentley’s promoters Queensberry Promotions – told BoxingScene. “If we can get Liam Paro fighting for a world title here in Australia, it’d be fantastic for us.
“Anywhere in Queensland I think would be great for Liam because Liam’s a Queenslander. The thing about Queenslanders is they’re very staunch; very passionate. In any sport Queenslanders stick together; he’s got a great following here in Queensland and while we could do the fight anywhere in Australia it would be great for him. If we’re going to do it here let’s try and do it in Queensland. Let’s try and get him that opportunity, because he’s representing Australia. It’s a fight that if we have it here in Australia on fair and even grounds, Liam Paro will become the next star of Australian boxing.
“I really wanted him to get that fight [against Donovan], but it’s a blessing and a curse. He misses out on that opportunity but the door’s now open to fight for the world title.
“As soon as possible. Liam’s ready now. You ask Liam now, he’s ready to go. He knows that he’s a world champion – that he’s that calibre – and we do too. Now he’s just got to get an opportunity to show it.”
